Agreement with Japan Starts Producing Results in Benefit of Seafarers

[By: Panama Maritime Authority]

During a recent visit to the Panama Maritime Authority, Senior Directors of the Japanese shipping company Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) indicated that during the second semester of 2023, they are processing 15 new job opportunities and the contracting of other 10 new cadets is foreseen for 2024, all of this to benefit the Panamanian seafarers, so they can board their ships (ships bearing the Panamanian flags or ships from other registries).

These embarking’s are the product of the Bilateral Cooperation Agreement signed last year between the PMA, through the Panamanian Embassy in Japan, and the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transportation and Tourism of Japan (MLIT) regarding mutual recognition in the training and certification according to Standard I/10 of the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers, 1978, as amended (STCW Convention´78).

We have been able to coordinate the requests of our Panamanian officers, who have slowly started to process the paperwork to obtain their Japanese license, among which the following can be highlighted:

• There are 2 approved officers and 3 approved cadets, from which one is already working onboard a ship of Japanese flag.
• Two cadets from the International Maritime University of Panama (UMIP) and two cadets from Columbus University have embarked.
• There is an officer soon to request the Japanese license, who will be traveling to Mumbai, India in January of 2024 to receive training and complete tests.
• There is also a second group that will go to India to get training, to start the paperwork and tests to be able to obtain their Japanese endorsement.
• For 2024, Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) has evaluated and approved the hiring of around 10 cadets from both of the maritime universities of the country.

This is a sample of the confidence that Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) has in the Panama Shipping Registry and in the training of new seafarers. That is why they desire to expand the Panamanian personnel in their ships, thus favoring the image of our country, the competences of our seafarers, and also strengthen the friendship and commercial bonds that unite us.